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CJP Bandial will not attend SCO meeting in India, says Pakistan
Foreign Office says owing to some unavoidable reasons, chief justice of Pakistan will not be able to participate in moot: Avoids question on Bilawal’s participation in SCO FMs meeting next month, saying matter under consideration
By: News DeskPublished: 10:55 AM, 10 Mar, 2023
Chief Justice of Pakistan Umar Ata Bandial
Caption: File photos.
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The Chief Justice of Pakistan will not participate in a meeting of the chief justices of supreme courts of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization’s member countries going to be held in India from today.
According to Foreign Office spokesperson Mumtaz Zehra Baloch, Chief Justice of Pakistan Umar Ata Bandial will not participate in the CJs Meeting of SCO member countries starting from March10-12 in India.
She said Pakistan is an active member country of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and regularly participates in its activities.
Pakistan has always been involved in the organization’s affairs. But owing to some unavoidable reasons, the Chief Justice of Pakistan will not be able to participate in the meeting on the scheduled dates, the spokesperson added.
Ms Baloch said that the Chief Justice of Pakistan has formally informed his Indian counterpart about the non-participation in the meeting.
However, on the question whether Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari would attend the SCO conference next month, the spokesperson said “the matter is under consideration and as and when this decision is taken, we will share it with everyone”.
India invited Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Umar Ata Bandial and Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari in the middle of March and May this year, respectively, for meetings under the Shanghai Cooperation Organization.
An invite for the Chief Justice of Pakistan to attend the meeting was delivered to the Foreign Office by the Indian High Commission in Islamabad.
A similar invite for Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has also been delivered to the Foreign Office by the Indian High Commission in Islamabad. FM Bilawal has been invited for the SCO foreign ministers’ conference expected in the middle of May this year.
This year, the SCO which includes Russia, China, India, Pakistan, Iran, and Central Asian States will be hosted by India.
